Current contact lenses have several disadvantages, including contact lens intolerance, immune reactions to the contact lenses themselves or to the protein bound to the lenses, and infections associated with contact lens use. To overcome these disadvantages, an ideal contact lens would have high water content, oxygen permeability, mechanical strength and resistance to protein adsorption. However, current contact lenses only have a subset of these properties. For example, silicone-based contact lenses offer high oxygen permeability and strength, but have a relatively high level of protein adsorption due to their hydrophobicity. Hydrophilic components such as poly(2-hydroxyethylmethacrylate) (PHEMA), poly(methacrylic acid) (PMAA), and poly(vinyl alcohol) (PVA) are often incorporated into contact lenses to increase water content and wettability. However, protein adsorption continues to be a problem with contact lenses based on these materials. Accordingly, there is a need in the art to develop materials for contact lenses that have high water content, oxygen permeability, mechanical strength and resistance to protein adsorption.